Geneva, Wednesday, 30 May 2012 - This week KCEU continued its lobbying of the 2012 India Universal Periodic Review of Human Rights (UPR). As previously noted the Government of India has come under repeated criticism for the Armed Forces Special Powers Act, immunity for armed forces and police who commit human rights abuses, failing to adequately train armed forces and the police about their human rights obligations, failing to ratify the Convention Against Torture, failing to ratify the Convention for the Protection of All Person from Disappearance, a lack of responses to human rights cases submitted by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), restricting the internet, failing to protect human rights defenders, failing to protect journalists, and failing to abolish the death penalty. Of 169 recommendations many pertain to these issues which are particularly relevant in Kashmir.

Today the Government of India has accepted the 169 recommendations which are put forward by states - many of whom KCEU has met with in recent weeks. The final adoption of the report will be voted in the 21st session of Human Rights Council in September 2012.

Barrister A. Majid Tramboo, who was present at todays meeting in Geneva said that “the UPR is an important process whereby governments and civil society can review the human rights record of a country in the previous four to five years. The second UPR of India has exposed the severe human rights problems in Indian Held Kashmir and it is noteworthy that so many of the recommendations pertain to Kashmir. While many of the recommendations would make a huge difference to the lives of the Kashmiri people were they to be undertaken the 67th recommendation is of particular importance. In the recent report by the Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders India was requested to undertake an impartial and thorough investigation into the issue of mass graves in Kashmir. By recommending that the Government of India “adopt the recommendations of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders” Spain have made the strongest call for that investigation during this UPR.”

The United States recommended that India “Ratify the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment and end impunity for security forces accused of committing human rights violations.”

The United Kingdom recommended that India “Expedite the ratification of the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment and its Optional Protocol, and adopt robust domestic legislation to this effect”.

Slovakia recommended that India “Repeal the Armed Forces Special Powers Act or adopt the negotiated amendments to it that would address the accountability of security personnel, the regulation concerning detentions as well as victims’ right to appeal in accordance to international standards.”

Numerous states made similar recommendations and the relevant text is copied below (the entire document is attached to this email).

Tramboo commended those nations that had brought up the more politically problematic issue of the AFSPA and mass graves while also commenting that “India accepted that it should ratify the Convention Against Torture during its previous UPR in 2008; many more nations have requested it this time india has once again accepted this recommendation and time will tell if the Government of India is committed to this goal”.

Prof. Nazir Ahmed Shawl, Chairman of Kashmir Centre London, commented that “substantial work has been undertaken by the Kashmiri diaspora to ensure that issues pertinent to the people of Kashmir have been raised by nations and by the OHCHR. India has received many recommendations that pertain to Kashmir and we should expect that these recommendations are carried out by the Government of India. India failing to ratify the CAT has been of particular prominence. The NGO community widely accepts that the India is unable to abide by the convention and many more states have recommended it in this round of UPR; we all wait for progress on this issue.”

KCEU will continue to lobby at the United Nations and interact with the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights until such a time as human rights violations in Kashmir are brought under control and the people of Kashmir are granted their right to self-determination.

KCEU will be meeting with states and the OHCHR in the run up to the adoption of the report and recommendations in September.

Relevant Recommendations

138.1. Ratify the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment and its Optional Protocol; the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance and the Statute of the International Criminal Court (Spain);

138.3. Expedite the ratification of the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment and its Optional Protocol, and adopt robust domestic legislation to this effect (United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland);

138.4. Ratify the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment and end impunity for security forces accused of committing human rights violations (United States of America);

138.5. Continue efforts to accede to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, as well as its optional protocol, and the International for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearances; and ratify ILO Conventions No. 169 and no. 189 (Iraq);

138.6. Accelerate its domestic procedure for ratification including the adoption of the Prevention against Torture Bill by its Parliament (Republic of Korea);

138.7. Ratify promptly the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment and relevant protocol (Italy);

138.8. Ratify the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment of Punishment as soon as possible (Maldives);

138.9. Ratify the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance and recognize the competence of its Committee, in accordance with articles 31 and 32 (Uruguay);

138.10. Accede to the ILO Convention No. 182 concerning the Prohibition and Immediate Action for the Elimination of the Worst Forms of Child Labour; ratify the Statute of the International Criminal Court and the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment and its Optional Protocol, the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families, and the ILO Convention No. 189 concerning Decent Work for Domestic Workers (Uruguay);

138.11. Consider the possibility of ratifying the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance (Argentina);

138.12. Ratify the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment and ensure that the instrument of ratification is fully consistent with the Convention (Australia);

138.13. Ratify the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearances, the Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, and the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (Austria);

138.15. Finalise the ratification of the Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (Botswana);

138.16. Ratify the Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, as well as its Optional Protocol (Brazil);

138.17. Expedite ratification of the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment and its Optional Protocol (Czech Republic);

138.18. Sign the Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment and its Optional Protocol and ratify the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance (Portugal);

138.20. Evaluate the possibility of ratifying the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance (Chile);

138.24. Ratify, in the shortest time, the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance as well as the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment and adopt related internal legislation (France);

138.28. Ratify Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment and the ILO Conventions no. 138 and 182 concerning child labour (Sweden);

138.29. Accelerate the ratification process of the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (Indonesia);

138.32. Conform its national legislation to international norms on the prevention of torture, to speed up the ratification of the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment and receive the Special Rapporteur on Torture (Switzerland);

138.33. Take the necessary measures to ensure that the existing national legislation against torture and cruel and inhumane and degrading treatment incorporates the highest international standards in this area (Costa Rica);

138.34. Prioritise the review and implementation of the Prevention Against Torture Bill, ensuring that it complies with the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment of Punishment (Maldives);

138.35. Review the law on the special powers of the armed forces to align it with its obligations under the International Convention on Civil and Political Rights (Switzerland);

138.36. Consider introducing a new bill to the Parliament, taking into full consideration of the suggestions of the Select Committee, and take further actions towards the ratification of Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (Timor-Leste);

138.37. Consider expediting the process to pass the 108th Constitutional Amendment Bill which seeks to reserve a significant portion of seats for women at the Lower House and state legislative assemblies and consider the ratification of the Optional Protocol to Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (Timor-Leste);

138.43. Enact a law on the protection of human rights defenders, with emphasis on those defenders facing greater risks, including those working on minority rights and the rights of scheduled castes and tribes (Czech Republic);

138.44. Repeal the Armed Forces Special Powers Act or adopt the negotiated amendments to it that would address the accountability of security personnel, the regulation concerning detentions as well as victims’ right to appeal in accordance to international standards (Slovakia);

138.45. Carry out an annual review of the 1958 Armed Forces Special Powers Act aiming to gradually reduce its geographic scope (France);

138.58. Further coordination among relevant national authorities and human rights institutions (Egypt);

138.59. Intensify efforts in providing capacity building and training programmes on human rights for its law enforcement officials as well as judicial and legal officials in the rural areas (Malaysia);

138.69. Allow the visit of the Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, whose request had been pending for 18 years, in line with India’s standing invitation issued in 2011 to all Special Procedures of the HRC (Hungary);

138.93. Respect the de facto moratorium on the death penalty which had been in place since 2004 (Spain);

138.94. Consider abolishing the death penalty or establishing a moratorium (Chile);

138.95. Maintain de facto moratorium on executions and ratify the Second Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights with a view to definitive abolishment of the death penalty (France);

138.96. Introduce as quickly as possible a de jure moratorium on executions (Belgium);

138.97. Adopt a de jure moratorium on capital punishment with a view to abolishing the death penalty (Italy);

138.98. Establish an official moratorium against the death penalty and take the necessary measures in view of its abolition (Switzerland);

138.99. Study the possibility of repealing the death penalty from its legal regime (Argentina);

138.100. Make the de facto moratorium into a permanent one with a view to abolishing the death penalty (Norway);

138.101.Consider adhering to the Second Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights aiming at the abolition of the death penalty (Portugal);

138.119. Guarantee effective access to justice in cases of human rights violations committed by security forces personnel with regard to the use of torture (Spain);

138.121.Solve remaining cases of human rights violations and create an independent committee to receive claims against the police that were referred to by the Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders (Iraq);

138.122. Further promote equal access to justice for all , including by reducing backlog and delays in the administration of cases in court, providing more legal aids to the poor and marginalized, as well as increasing the use of alternative measures to pre-trial detention ( Thailand);